More Improvements
We have two upgrades scheduled for February and March.
This month, we will be adding another rack of 33.6 modems to our Salem facility. Since the upgrade to our existing 28.8 modems to 33.6 last month, we now only have 14.4 and 33.6 modems in Salem. At the end of the month we will implement a new numbering plan to take advantage of some spare lines and publish the new numbers in the March newsletter.
We have also retained an engineering firm in Mountain View, CA to design and produce a new mailserver for our network. Several of these engineers actually developed the mailserver software, Sendmail, so we anticipate this server will be the best available in the market. We expect to receive this new server in March and will put it in service a week or so afterward.
56kbps Modems
Rumors abound in industry circles that an international standard will soon be agreed upon for 56kbps modems.
From what we've heard, the new standard will not use either the X2 or KFlex technologies. Apparently a third technology has been developed and will be adopted!
It has been our policy to wait for this standard to be accepted prior to implementing 56kbps modems. As soon as this standard is accepted, we will begin offering this access speed.
Access Quality
Last month, several subscribers mentioned that they were constantly being disconnected. Our system automatically disconnects subscribers only after 40 minutes of idle time. We do this so people who may forget they were still on-line will not have extra hours logged on their account. If you get disconnected, there are several potential reasons why - most have to do with your telephone line.
Make sure your modem is directly connected to your phone jack. Many people use a splitter at the jack, so they can plug into their modem and a phone or fax. The splitters introduce enough noise on the line to disconnect your modem. Instead, try connecting your phone or fax to the second jack on your modem. This solution fixes most people’s disconnect trouble.
If possible, do not share your modem line with phones.
If you have several phones connected to the same line, including your modem, your modem will disconnect any time someone picks up a phone.
Do not use the new, braided telephone cables to connect your modem to the phone jack.
The newer phone cables are made of thin, braided copper wire. They are cheaper to make and are much "noisier" than the older phone cables made of solid copper wires. You can identify the newer phone cables by their colored, translucent plastic coating.
Contacting Us
On Saturday, January 17 at 8:30 am, a subscriber called to say he had been unable to log in for several days and we were unable to help him.
Why?
The subscriber did not leave his name or phone number!
We really want to help. Please leave your name and phone number when leaving us a message, so we can return your call.
We also have several e-mail addresses available for you to contact us. Each address is meant for a specific topic:
office@cove.com is meant for administrative questions, such as account information, billing issues, etc.
webmaster@cove.com is meant for web-related issues, such as problems accessing our pages, questions about your own website, suggestions for our website, etc.
noc@cove.com is meant for network-related issues, such as trouble with e-mail, logging into the network, etc.
Please note that ostaski@cove.com is Bill's private e-mail address, which he rarely has time to read :)
Newsletter On-Line
Beginning with this issue, we will also be putting this newsletter on-line! In a week or so, you will be able to find this newsletter, and as many back issues as we can find, at www.cove.com/newsltr.html - linked under the Community Section in the new Subscribers Page. The Subscribers Page will also link to a HomePage Page, providing a link to all subscribers' homepages. Stay tuned!
Internet Training
Cape Ann subscribers should call Gloucester Continuing Education at 281-9873 for a schedule of classes being held in Cape Ann during December.
Classes will be held at the Cove in Salem on the 10th and 24th, from 6pm to 9pm.
What's New at the Cove is a monthly publication of Cove Communications.
Publisher, Bill Ostaski
Editor, John Trefry
27 Congress Street
Salem, MA 01970
(978) 741-5300
office@cove.com
